Method for allowing drone activity to modify event detection by a monitoring system

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a storage device, for enabling drone activity in a property monitored by a property monitoring system without triggering a false alarm. In one aspect, the method includes actions of obtaining a location of the drone, identifying a first sensor installed at the property that is within a predetermined distance of the drone, detecting first sensor data generated by the first sensor that is within a predetermined distance of the drone, wherein the first sensor data includes data that is indicative of an event, determining whether a second sensor that is mounted to the drone is generating second sensor data that corroborates the event indicated by the first sensor data, and disregarding, by the property monitoring system, the first sensor data in determining whether to trigger an alarm.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/672,637, filed Nov. 4, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 15/976,648, filed May 10, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No.10,467,891, issued Nov. 5, 2019, which claims the benefit of the U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 62/504,167 filed May 10, 2017 andentitled “Method for Allowing Drone Activity to Modify Event Detectionby a Monitoring System.” All of these prior applications areincorporated by reference in their entirety

BACKGROUND

A drone may be programmed to perform surveillance operations for aproperty. Surveillance operations may include autonomously navigatinginside the property, outside the property, or both, and using one ormore drone-mounted sensors to collect information about the property.The drone-mounted sensors may include sensors that capture video data,sensors that capture audio data, sensors that capture movement, sensorsthat capture temperature data, sensors that capture the presence ofgases, or the like.

SUMMARY

Operation of a drone in a property that includes the monitoring systempresents a number of challenges. For example, the surveillance devicesinstalled inside the property, outside the property, or both, may detect(i) the presence of the drone as the drone performs routine surveillanceoperations and (ii) generate sensor data that is indicative of apotential event. The generated sensor data from one or more thesurveillance devices based on the presence of the drone may result inthe triggering of false alarms. The occurrence of false alarms mayresult in one or more of the surveillance devices being reset,deactivated, or even replaced. Alternatively, or in addition, such falsealarms may also incur costs for the property occupant, property owner,or the like if one or more of the false alarms trigger an officialresponse from a security monitoring service, law enforcement agency, orthe like. This is because a security monitoring service, law enforcementagency, or both, may issue a fine to the property occupant, propertyowner, or the like for responding to such false alarms.

Systems and methods are disclosed that allow for drone activity tomodify event detection by a monitoring system. In some implementations,the system and method may modify event detection by the monitoringsystem in an effort to reduce the occurrence of false alarms triggeredby drone operations. The disclosed systems and methods facilitatedeactivation of one or more monitoring system sensors for apredetermined period of time in response to the detection of droneactivity that is occurring in a portion of the property, in response toa determination that drone activity will soon occur in a portion of theproperty, or the like. Alternatively, or in addition, the disclosedsystems and methods may disregard (e.g., ignore) sensor data generatedby one or more sensors in a predetermined vicinity of a drone's currentlocation unless one or more drone-mounted sensors corroborate the sensordata generated by the one or more sensors.

According to one innovative aspect of the present disclosure, a propertymonitoring system for enabling drone activity in a property monitored bythe property monitoring system without triggering a false alarm isdisclosed. The property monitoring system may include a monitoring unitthat includes one or more processors and one or more computer readablestorage media storing instructions that, when executed by the one ormore processors, performs operations. In one aspect, the operations mayinclude obtaining, by the monitoring unit, a location of the drone,identifying, by the monitoring unit, a first sensor installed at theproperty that is within a predetermined distance of the drone,detecting, by the monitoring unit, first sensor data generated by thefirst sensor that is within a predetermined distance of the drone,wherein the first sensor data includes data that is indicative of anevent, determining, by the monitoring unit, whether a second sensor thatis mounted to the drone is generating second sensor data thatcorroborates the event indicated by the first sensor data, and inresponse to a determination that the second sensor that is mounted tothe drone has not generated second sensor data that corroborates theevent indicated by the first sensor data, disregarding, by themonitoring unit, the first sensor data in determining whether to triggeran alarm.

Other aspects include corresponding methods, apparatus, and computerprograms to perform actions of methods defined by instructions encodedon one or more computer storage devices.

These and other versions may optionally include one or more of thefollowing features. For instance, in some implementations, theoperations may further include in response to a determination that thesecond sensor that is mounted to the drone has generated second sensordata that corroborates the event indicated by the first sensor data,determining, by the monitoring unit, to trigger an alarm based on theevent indicated by the first sensor data and the second sensor data.

In some implementations, the operations may include triggering, by themonitoring unit, an alarm based on the determination by the monitoringunit that the second sensor data corroborates the event indicated by thefirst sensor data.

In some implementations, the operation may further include identifying,by the monitoring unit, a third sensor installed at the property that isnot within a predetermined distance of the drone, detecting, by themonitoring unit, third sensor data generated by the third sensor that isnot within a predetermined distance of the drone, wherein the thirdsensor data includes data that is indicative of an event, anddetermining, by the monitoring unit, to trigger an alarm based on theevent indicated by the third sensor data.

In some implementations, obtaining, by the monitoring unit, the locationof the drone includes obtaining location information that is broadcastby a communication device that is mounted to the drone.

In some implementations, identifying, by the monitoring unit, a firstsensor installed at the property that is within a predetermined distanceof the drone may include identifying a first sensor installed at theproperty that is located within the same room as the drone and the firstsensor that is installed at the property includes a motion detector, aglass break sensor, a camera, or a microphone.

In some implementations, the second sensor that is mounted to the droneincludes a motion sensor.

In some implementations, detecting, by the monitoring unit, first sensordata generated by the first sensor that is within a predetermineddistance of the drone may include detecting, by the monitoring unit,first sensor data generated by a first motion sensor that is within apredetermined distance of the drone, wherein the first sensor data thatis generated by the first motion sensor includes data indicative of amoving object, and determining, by the monitoring unit, whether a secondsensor that is mounted to the drone is generating second sensor datathat corroborates the event indicated by the first sensor data mayinclude determining, by the monitoring unit, whether a second motionsensor that is mounted to the drone has generated data indicative of amoving object that corroborates the detection of a moving object by thefirst motion sensor.

In some implementations, detecting, by the monitoring unit, first sensordata generated by the first sensor that is within a predetermineddistance of the drone may include detecting, by the monitoring unit,first sensor data generated by a first motion sensor that is within apredetermined distance of the drone, wherein the first sensor data thatis generated by the first motion sensor includes data indicative of amoving object, and wherein determining, by the monitoring unit, whethera second sensor that is mounted to the drone is generating second sensordata that corroborates the event indicated by the first sensor data mayinclude determining, by the monitoring unit, whether a camera that ismounted to the drone has captured image data that depicts an image of ahuman object that is present in the property and corroborates thedetection of a moving object by the first motion sensor.

In some implementations, detecting, by the monitoring unit, first sensordata generated by the first sensor that is within a predetermineddistance of the drone may include detecting, by the monitoring unit,first sensor data generated by a first motion sensor that is within apredetermined distance of the drone, wherein the first sensor data thatis generated by the first motion sensor includes data indicative of thepresence of a human object and determining, by the monitoring unit,whether a second sensor that is mounted to the drone is generatingsecond sensor data that corroborates the event indicated by the firstsensor data may include determining, by the monitoring unit, whether amicrophone that is mounted to the drone has captured sound data that isindicative of a moving object in the property and corroborates thedetection of the presence of the human object by the first motionsensor.

In some implementations, sound data that is indicative of the presenceof the human object in the property may include the sound of a voice,the sound of footsteps, or the sound of breathing.

In some implementations, detecting, by the monitoring unit, first sensordata generated by the first sensor that is within a predetermineddistance of the drone may include detecting, by the monitoring unit,first sensor data generated by a first glass break sensor that is withina predetermined distance of the drone, wherein the first sensor datathat is generated by the first glass break sensor includes dataindicative of a high pitched sound associated with the breaking ofglass, and wherein determining, by the monitoring unit, whether a secondsensor that is mounted to the drone is generating second sensor datathat corroborates the event indicated by the first sensor data mayinclude determining, by the monitoring unit, whether a secondglass-break sensor that is mounted to the drone has generated dataindicative of a high pitched sound that corroborates the detection ofbreaking glass by the first glass break sensor.

In some implementations, the monitoring unit is located at a locationthat is remote from the property.

These, and other innovative aspects, are described in more detail in thecorresponding detailed description, drawings, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a contextual diagram of an example of a system for allowingdrone activity to modify event detection by a monitoring system.

FIG. 2 is a contextual diagram of another example of a system forallowing drone activity to modify event detection by a monitoringsystem.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an example of a process for allowing droneactivity to modify event detection by a monitoring system.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of another example of a process for allowing droneactivity to modify event detection by a monitoring system.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of another example of a process for allowing droneactivity to modify event detection by a monitoring system.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of some example components that can be used toimplement a system for allowing drone activity to modify event detectionby a monitoring system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is a contextual diagram of an example of a system for allowingdrone 150 activity to modify event detection by a monitoring system 100.The monitoring system 100 may include at least a monitoring systemcontrol unit 110, a drone charging station 115, a network 140, a drone150, and one or more surveillance devices. The one or more surveillancedevices may include one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c,130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or a combination thereof. The monitoring systemcontrol unit 110 is configured to detect and process (i) sensor datagenerated by the one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e,120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, (ii) images, videos, or the like capturedand transmitted by the one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d,130 e, 130 f, (iii) images, videos, or the like captured and transmittedby a drone-mounted camera 150 a, (iv) sensor data generated by one ormore drone-mounted sensors 150 b, (v) messages generated and transmittedby the drone 150, or (vi) a combination thereof. In someimplementations, the monitoring system control unit 110 may beconfigured to perform processing and analysis of the detected data todetect the potential existence of one or more events such as alarmevents.

In some implementations, the monitoring system 100 may also include anetwork 180, a monitoring application server 190, and a central alarmstation server 195. In some instances, the monitoring application server190 may supplement, or replace, the functionality of the monitoringsystem control unit 110. For example, the monitoring system control unit110 may detect and relay (i) sensor data generated by the one or moresensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i,(ii) images, videos, or the like captured and transmitted by the one ormore cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, (iii) images,videos, or the like captured and transmitted by a drone-mounted camera150 a, (iv) sensor data generated by one or more drone-mounted sensors150 b, (v) messages generated and transmitted by the drone 150, or (vi)a combination thereof, to a cloud-based monitoring application server190 using the networks 140, 180, and one or more communications links182. In such implementations, the monitoring application server 190 mayperform processing and analysis of the relayed data in an effort todetect the potential existence of one or more events such as alarmevents. Accordingly, the monitoring system 100 may include a local“monitoring unit” in the form of a monitoring system control unit 110 ora remote “monitoring” unit in the form of a monitoring applicationserver 190.

Alternatively, in some implementations, the monitoring applicationserver 190 may be a cloud-based solution that can replace the localmonitoring system control unit 110. For example, in this implementation(and other implementations) each sensor, camera, or the like may beequipped with a cellular communication device that can directlycommunicate generated (or captured) data to the monitoring applicationserver via the one or more networks 140, 180, and one or morecommunication links 182. The monitoring application server 190 can thenperform processing and analysis of the sensor, camera, and drone datathat it receives in order to detect the potential existence of one ormore events such as alarm events. Accordingly, in some implementations,the monitoring application server 190 may be configured to perform eachof the operations described herein as being performed by the monitoringsystem control unit 110.

The monitoring system control unit 110 can be configured to detect thatthe drone 150 has departed a drone charging station 115 on a navigationpath 105. For example, the monitoring system control unit 110 may (i)receive a notification from the drone 150, (ii) receive a notificationfrom the drone charging station 115, or (iii) receive a notificationfrom both, that is broadcast via the network 140 and individually, orcollectively, indicate that the drone 150 has departed the dronecharging station 115. The network 140 may include one or more of a LAN,a WAN, a cellular network, the Internet, or a combination thereof.

Typically, the monitoring system control unit 110, when in an armedstate, may monitor sensor data generated by each of the one or moresensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i,120 j, camera feeds (e.g., video feeds, image feeds, etc) from one ormore cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like anddetermine whether the sensor data, camera data, or both, is indicativeof a potential event such as an alarm event (e.g., movement that may beindicative of a trespasser on the premises, breaking of glass that maybe indicative of a break-in by an intruder, or the like), an emergencyevent (e.g., fire, flood, gas leak or the like), or the like. However,the monitoring system control unit 110 of the present disclosure mayperform different monitoring operations that depart from the typicalmonitoring activity described above based on the launch of a drone 150from the drone charging station 115.

In response to detecting that the drone 150 has departed a dronecharging station 115 the monitoring system control unit 110 may modifyevent detection processes employed by the monitoring system 100, themonitoring system control unit 110, the monitoring application server190, or a combination thereof. In some implementations, the monitoringsystem control unit 110 may deactivate one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b,120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, one or more cameras 130a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like in response to a drone150 launch. Deactivating one or more sensors, one or more cameras, orthe like may include the monitoring system control unit 110 transmittinginstructions to the one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, the one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like that configure the one or moresensors, the one or more cameras, or the like to not generate sensordata, camera data, or the like based on detection of an activity thattypically causes the one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c,130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like to generate sensor data, camera data,or the like. Activities that typically cause the one or more sensors 120a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, the one ormore cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like togenerate sensor data, camera data, or the like may include activitiessuch as movement within the property 101, glass-breaks within theproperty 101, a door of property 101 opening, a window of property 101opening, loud noises within the property 101, or the like. Sensor datamay include, for example, (i) data generated by a sensor 120 a, 120 b,120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i in response to movement,(ii) data generated by a sensor 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i in response to a glass-break, (iii) datagenerated by a sensor 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g,120 h, 120 i in response to a window or door opening, (iv) datagenerated by a sensor 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g,120 h, 120 i in response to a loud noise, (v) a combination thereof, orthe like. Camera data may include images, videos, or the like capturedby the one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f.

In some implementations, the monitoring system control unit 110 maystrategically disable one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d,120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like. For example, in someimplementations, the monitoring system control unit 110 may only disableone or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120h, 120 i, one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f,or the like in a particular portion of the property 101 based on thepresence of the drone 150 in proximity to one or more of the sensors 120a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, one or moreof the cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like.

For example, in response to the launch of the drone 150, the monitoringsystem control unit 110 may determine that the motion sensing sensor 120e is in the flight path 105 of the drone 150, and then the monitoringsystem control unit 110 may transmit an instruction to a motion-sensingsensor 120 e via the network 140 that instructs the sensor 120 e todeactivate for a predetermined amount of time. In such instances, themotion sensing sensor 120 e may be deactivated for a sufficient amountof time for the drone 150 to navigate past the motion sensing sensor 120e without the motion sensing sensor 120 e generating sensor data that isindicative of movement based on the drone's 150 movement. Deactivatingthe motion sensing sensor 120 e in this manner helps to reduce thelikelihood that one or more sensors of the monitoring system 100 willtrigger a false alarm.

Alternatively, or in addition, the monitoring system control unit 110may modify event detection processes employed by the monitoring system100 without deactivating one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d,120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like. Instead, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 110 may employ different processes in response to thedetection of a drone 150 launch from the drone charging station 115. Forexample, the monitoring system control unit 110 may determine todisregard (e.g., ignore) sensor data generated by one or more sensors120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, one ormore cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like basedon (i) the detection of a drone 150 launch, (ii) a drone 150 flight path105, (iii) drone location data received from the drone 150, (iv) acombination thereof, or (v) the like. In some implementations, sensordata generated by one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e,120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, camera data generated by one or more cameras130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like that are within apredetermined distance of the drone 150 may be disregarded (e.g.,ignored) by the monitoring system control unit 110 unless the sensordata generated by the one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d,120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, the camera data generated by one ormore cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like iscorroborated by one or more drone-mounted sensors.

The monitoring system control unit 110 may determine the one or moresensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i,the one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or thelike that should be disabled, disregarded, or the like by comparing acurrent drone location or future drone location to (i) the location ofone or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120h, 120 i, (ii) the location of one or more cameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c,130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or (iii) a combination thereof that is stored in amonitoring system database. The current drone 150 location or futuredrone 150 location may be determined in a number of ways. For example,the current drone 150 location may be based on location informationbroadcast that is periodically broadcast by the drone 150.Alternatively, the current or future drone 150 location may bedetermined by the monitoring system control unit 110, the monitoringapplication server 190, or both, based on an evaluation of one or moreof (i) drone 150 location information received from drone 150, (ii) adrone's 150 predetermined flight path 105, (iii) a drone 150 speed, (iv)a time of drone 150 launch, (v) a combination thereof, or (vi) the like.

By way of example, with reference to FIG. 1, the drone 150 follows anavigation path 105 that takes the drone 150 past at least theglass-break sensor 120 b and the motion sensor 120 a. The glass-breaksensor 120 b may be configured to generate sensor data that suggeststhat glass was broken in the vicinity of the sensor 120 b in response tothe detection of a sound pattern, frequency, pitch, or the like that istypically associated with glass shattering. The motion sensor 120 a maybe configured to generate sensor data in response to the detection ofmotion in the vicinity of the sensor 120 a. The monitoring systemcontrol unit 110 may determine that sensor data generated by sensors 120b and 120 a should be disregarded (e.g., ignored) because current drone150 location broadcast by the drone via network 140 and detected by themonitoring system control unit 110 indicates that the drone 150 is inRoom A. The monitoring system control unit 110 may modify the monitoringsystem control unit's 110 processing and analysis of detected sensordata to disregard (e.g., ignore) sensor data generated by sensors 120 band 120 a. Alternatively, or in addition, the monitoring system controlunit 110 may modify the monitoring system control unit's 110 processingand analysis of detected camera data to disregard (e.g., ignore) cameradata generated by cameras 130 a, 130 b.

Continuing with the example of FIG. 1, the drone 150 navigates near theglass-break sensor 120 b and the motion sensor 120 a. The glass-breaksensor 120 b may generate sensor data 162 that is detected by themonitoring system control unit 110 via network 140. The generated sensordata 162 may be based on the sensor 120 b detecting one or morehigh-pitched noise produced by the drone's 150 rotors, propulsionsystem, internal circuitry, or the like that may produce a soundpattern, frequency, pitch, or the like that is similar to glassshattering. Alternatively, or in addition, the motion sensor 120 a maygenerate sensor data 164 that is detected by the monitoring systemcontrol unit 110 via network 140. The generated sensor data 164 may bebased on the drone's 150 motion. In such instances, the monitoringsystem control unit's 110 modified processing and analysis of detectedsensor data based on the drone's 150 presence in Room A is modified todisregard (e.g., ignore) the sensor data 162, 164. In someimplementations, the monitoring system control unit 110 may disregardthe sensor data 162, 164 while the drone 150 is present in Room A unlessthe sensor data 162, 164 is corroborated by one or more drone-mountedsensors 150 b. The monitoring system control unit 110 may distinguishsensor data generated by one or more sensors 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d,120 e, 120 f, 120 g, 120 h, 120 i, camera data generated by one or morecameras 130 a, 130 b, 130 c, 130 d, 130 e, 130 f, or the like and sensorgenerated by one or more drone-mounted sensors 150 b, camera datagenerated by one or more drone-mounted cameras 150 a, or the like basedon a sensor identifier that is included within the generated sensordata, camera data, or the like.

However, in the example of FIG. 1, the drone's 150 drone-mounted sensors150 b fail to detect the occurrence of a potential event such as aglass-break, motion inside the property 101, or the like. In suchinstances, the drone's 150 drone-mounted sensors 150 b do not generateany sensor data that can be detected by the monitoring system controlunit 110 to corroborate the sensor data 162, 164 from the glass-breaksensor 620 b and the motion sensor 620 a, respectively. In response tothe lack of additional corroborating sensor data from the drone 150, themonitoring system control unit 110 may disregard (e.g., ignore) thesensor data 162, 164 and avoid triggering a false alarm based on thesensor data 162, 164.

Alternatively, in other implementations, disregarding (e.g., ignoring)sensor data 162, 164 by the monitoring system control unit 110 mayinclude delaying the triggering of an alarm based on the detection ofsensor data 162, 164. In some implementations, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 110 may only employ a delay in triggering an alarm inresponse to sensor data 162, 164 if the monitoring system control unit110 has received data, stored data, or a combination thereof, indicatingthat the drone 150 is present within a predetermined vicinity of thesensors 120 b and 120 a that generated the sensor data 162, 164. Thedelayed triggering of the alarm can allow a predetermined amount of timefor feedback to be received from the drone 150. If the monitoring systemcontrol unit 110 does not receive feedback from the drone within thepredetermined amount of time established by the delay, then themonitoring system control unit may trigger an alarm based on the sensordata 162, 164. In some implementations, the monitoring system controlunit 110 may transmit a message to the drone 150 to request a statusreport of the portion of the property that includes sensors 120 b and120 a that generated sensor data 162, 164.

The drone 150 may broadcast a message 172 that includes a status reportrelated to the current threat level of associated with the portion ofthe property that includes sensors 120 b and 120 a. That message 172 maybe broadcast in response to the request for a status report from themonitoring system control unit 110 or independently of a request for astatus report from the monitoring system control unit 110. For example,the drone 150 may periodically transmit a status report at theexpiration of a predetermined period of time (e.g., every 3 seconds,every 5 seconds, every 7 seconds, every 10 seconds, or the like). Thestatus report may include, for example, a snapshot of sensor datagenerated by the drones 150 drone-mount sensors 150 b, drone-mountedcameras 150 a, or the like. Alternatively, the status report may includea binary value indicating that the portion of the property associatedwith the sensors 120 b and 120 a that generated sensor data 162, 164 iseither safe (e.g., no sensor data generated that is indicative of apotential event) or not safe (e.g., sensor data is generated that isindicative of a potential event).

In this scenario, the drone 150 may generate and transmit a message 172to the monitoring system control unit 110 indicating that the Room A issafe. The drone 150 may have determined that the Room A is safe becausethe drone-mounted sensors failed to generate sensor data that isindicative of a potential event. Accordingly, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 110 can disregard (e.g., ignore) sensor data 162, 164 andavoid triggering a false alarm based on sensor data 162, 164.

In a similar manner, the drone's presence in Room A may cause themonitoring system control unit 110 to deactivate the cameras 130 a, 130b in Room A for at least a predetermined amount of time. Whendeactivated, the cameras 130 a, 130 b may not generate, capture, or thelike any video, image, or audio data. The cameras 130 a, 130 b may bereactivated after the predetermined period of time expires.Alternatively, or in addition, the monitoring system control unit 110may transmit a message to the cameras 130 a, 130 b to reactivate afterthe drone 150 leaves Room A.

In other implementations, the drone's presence in Room A may cause themonitoring system control unit 110 to disregard (e.g., ignore) cameradata generated by the cameras 130 a, 130 b while the drone remains inRoom A. In some implementations, camera data may still be captured bycameras 130 a, 130 b, but the monitoring system control unit 110,application monitoring server 190, or both, may determine not to storethe captured camera data while the drone is present in Room A. Themonitoring system control unit 110 may continue to disregard (e.g.,ignore) the camera data captured by cameras 130 a, 130 b until (i) thedrone 150 leaves Room A, or (ii) the drone-mounted sensor 150 b datacorroborates the existence of a potential event in Room A. Themonitoring system control unit 110, the monitoring application server190, or both may resume storing camera data from the cameras 130 a, 130b in Room A after the drone 150 leaves Room A.

FIG. 2 is a contextual diagram of another example of a system forallowing drone 250 activity to modify event detection by a monitoringsystem 200.

The monitoring system 200 is the same monitoring system 200. However,the example of FIG. 2 highlights an example of the monitoring system 200responding to a scenario where an intruder 203 is breaking into theproperty 201 via the window 202 when the drone 250 is present in Room A.

By way of example, with reference to FIG. 2, the drone 250 follows anavigation path 205 that takes the drone 250 past at least theglass-break sensor 220 b and the motion sensor 220 a. The monitoringsystem control unit 210 may determine based on a current drone locationindicating that the drone 250 is located in Room A, that the sensor datagenerated by sensors 220 b and 220 a should be disregarded (e.g.,ignored). Alternatively, or in addition, the monitoring system controlunit 210 may determine to disregard (e.g., ignore) camera data generatedby the cameras 130 a, 130 b. The monitoring system control unit 210 maymodify the monitoring system control unit's 210 processing and analysisof detected sensor data and camera data to disregard (e.g., ignore) (i)sensor data generated by sensors 220 b, 220 a and (ii) camera datagenerated by cameras 130 a, 130 b. At the same time, the monitoringsystem control unit 210 may continue to monitor sensor data, cameradata, or the like in other portions of the property where the drone 150is not currently located.

In the example of FIG. 2, the intruder 203 may break the glass window202 and begin to enter Room A as the drone 250 is navigating throughRoom A of the property 201. In response to the presence of the drone250, the intruder breaking the glass and entering the property 201, orboth, the glass-break sensor 220 b generates sensor data 262 and themotion sensor 220 a generates sensor data 264. In such instances, themonitoring system control unit 210 may initially disregard (e.g.,ignore) the sensor data 262, 264 for at least a predetermined amount oftime (i) based on the determination that a drone 250 has been launched,(ii) based on the current location of the drone 250, (iii) based on apotential future location of the drone 250, or (iv) a combinationthereof, unless the sensor data 262, 264 is corroborated by the drone250. The drone 250 may corroborate the sensor data 264 by generatingsensor data that is indicative of a potential event. Alternatively, orin addition, the drone 250 may corroborate the sensor data 262, 264 bybroadcasting a message that includes a status report of the Room A. Themonitoring system control unit 210 may also disregard (e.g., ignore)camera data generated by cameras 130 a, 130 b.

With continuing reference to FIG. 2, for example, the drone-mountedsensors 250 b can (i) detect the breaking of the glass window 202, (ii)detect movement by the intruder 203, or a (iii) combination thereof. Insuch instances, the drone's 250 drone-mounted sensors 250 b may generatesensor data 272 that is detected by the monitoring system control unit210. The drone generated sensor data 272 may be used by the monitoringsystem control unit 210 to corroborate the sensor data 262, 264generated by the sensors 220 b, 220 a, respectively. In such instances,the monitoring system control unit 210 may determine based on (i) thereceived sensor data 262, 264 and (ii) the received drone generatedsensor data 272 that a potential event is occurring at the property 101in Room A. In such instances, the monitoring system control unit 210 maystop disregarding (e.g., ignoring) the sensor data 262, 264, stopdisregarding (e.g., ignoring) the camera data generated by cameras 130a, 130 b, and then trigger an alarm since the sensor data 262, 264 wascorroborated by the drone 250.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an example of a process 300 for allowing droneactivity to modify event detection by a monitoring system. Generally,the process 300 may include determining that a drone has left a chargingdock (310), determining one or more sensors that are associated with theflight path of the drone (320), and transmitting one or moreinstructions to the one or more sensors that instruct the one or moresensors to deactivate for a predetermined amount of time (330). Forconvenience, the process 300 is further described below as beingperformed by a monitoring system such as the monitoring system 100 or200, as described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

In more detail, the monitoring system determines 310 that a drone hasleft a charging dock. For example, the monitoring system may beconfigured to detect notifications indicating that the drone haslaunched from the charging dock. In some implementations, the drone maytransmit a message to the monitoring system indicating that the dronehas launched. Alternatively, or in addition, the charging dock maytransmit a message to the monitoring system indicating that the dronehas launched.

The monitoring system determines 320 one or more sensors that areassociated with the flight path of the drone. The monitoring system maydetermine the one or more sensors that are associated with the flightpath of the drone by accessing data describing the location of the oneor more sensors stored in the monitoring system database. In someimplementations, the drone may periodically broadcast the drone'scurrent location as the drone navigates through a property monitored bythe monitoring system. In such instances, the monitoring system mayperiodically receive updates regarding the drone's current location.Then, the drone can access a monitoring system database and compare thedrone's current location to sensor locations stored in the monitoringsystem database in order to identify one or more sensors within apredetermined distance of the drone's current location. The comparisonmay yield one or more sensors that are within a predetermined distanceof the drone's current location. The one or more sensors may include amotion sensor, a glass-break sensor, an audio sensor, a camera, or thelike.

Alternatively, or in addition, the drone may be configured to navigatethe property on a predetermined flight path. The predetermined flightpath may be stored in the drone's memory, in the memory unit of themonitoring system, or both. The monitoring system may access thepredetermined flight path, and determine one or more sensors that areassociated with the drone's current location, one or more sensors thatare associated with the drone's future location, or both. The monitoringsystem may be able to determine, based on (i) a timestamp associatedwith the drone's launch, (ii) the location of one or more sensors, and(iii) the drone's speed, the respective points-in-time in the futurewhen a drone will encounter one or more particular sensors within theproperty when the drone navigates a predetermined flight path. In suchinstances, the monitoring system can generate a future time for eachrespective sensor of the one or more sensors that indicates theparticular point-in-time when the drone will be in the vicinity of therespective sensor.

The monitoring system may transmit 330 one or more instructions to theone or more sensors that instruct the one or more sensors to deactivatefor a predetermined amount of time. The instructions may be transmittedin response to a determination that the drone's current location iswithin a predetermined distance of a location of the one or moresensors. In some implementations, the instructions may be generated,transmitted, or a combination thereof, based on particularpoints-in-time that the monitoring system calculated in advance based onthe drone's predetermined flight path.

Deactivating the one or more sensors may include instructing the one ormore sensors to not generate sensor data based on the detection of anactivity that typically causes the one or more sensors to generatesensors data. For example, a motion sensor may be deactivated byinstructing the motion sensor to not generate sensor data in response tomotion. This may include, for example, instructing the motion sensor topower down, enter a low power state, or the like. Powering down mayinclude completely powering off the sensor. Entering a low power statemay include turning off activity detection features of the sensor whileleaving a receiving unit and processing unit powered on to receiveinstructions from a monitoring system to reactivate the sensor after thedrone departs the vicinity of the sensor. The deactivation instructionmay instruct the one or more sensors to deactivate for a predeterminedperiod of time. The predetermined period of time may be determined basedon (i) the drone's current location, (ii) the speed of the drone, (iii)the location of the one or more sensors, (iv) the drone's predeterminedflight path, or (v) a combination thereof.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of another example of a process 400 for allowingdrone activity to modify event detection by a monitoring system.Generally, the process 400 may include obtaining a location of a drone(410), determining one or more sensors that are within a predetermineddistance of the drone (420), detecting first sensor data from one ormore of the sensors that are associated with the drone's location (430),detecting second sensor data from one or more drone-mounted sensors(440), and determining whether to trigger an alarm event based on (i)the first sensor data and (ii) the second sensor data (450). In responseto determining that the drone-mounted sensor data does not trigger apotential event, disregarding first sensor data and do not trigger apotential alarm event (460). Alternatively, in response to determiningthat the drone-mounted sensor data does trigger a potential alarm event,triggering a potential alarm event (470). For convenience, the process400 is further described below as being performed by a monitoring systemsuch as the monitoring system 100 or 200, as described with reference toFIGS. 1 and 2.

The monitoring system obtains 410 the location of a drone. Themonitoring system may obtain the location of the drone in a number ofdifferent ways. For example, the monitoring system may receive locationinformation broadcast by the drone. The broadcast location informationmay be indicative of the drone's current location. Alternatively, themonitoring system may determine the current or future location of thedrone based on the drone's predetermined flight path. For example, themonitoring system may receive a notification with a timestamp when thedrone launches from a charging station. The monitoring system may accessa storage location storing data describing the drone's predeterminednavigation path. Then, based on the (i) drone's launch time, (ii) thedrone's speed, (iii) the drone's predetermined flight path, or (iv) acombination thereof, the monitoring system can predict the drone'scurrent location, one or more future locations for the drone, acombination thereof, or the like.

The monitoring system detects 430 first sensor data from one or more ofthe sensors that are associated with a drone's location. For example,the monitoring system may detect sensor data generated by one or moresensors located within a predetermined distance of the drone. A sensormay be within a predetermined distance of the drone if the sensor iswithin a predetermined number of inches, feet, yards, or the like of thedrone. Alternatively, a sensor may be within a predetermined distance ofthe drone if the sensor is located in the same portion of the property(e.g., the same room) as the drone. The one or more sensors may includemotion sensors, glass-break sensors, cameras, or the like.

The monitoring system detects 440 second sensor data from one or moredrone-mounted sensors. The drone-mounted sensors may include one or moremotion sensors, one or more glass-break sensors, one or more cameras,one or more microphones, or the like. The drone-mounted sensors may beconfigured to detect the presence of activity (e.g., motion,glass-breaks, footsteps, or the like) within a predetermined location ofthe one or more first sensors. In some implementations, the secondsensor data may also include a status report that is generated by thedrone. The status report may include sensor data generated by one ormore drone-mounted sensors. Alternatively, the status report may includea binary value indicative of the current threat level of property suchas a “0” indicating that a potential threat exists or a “1” indicatingthat a potential threat does not exist. In some implementations, thebinary value indicative of the current threat level of the property mayinclude more than one digit, character, or the like.

The monitoring system determines 450 whether to trigger an event basedon (i) the first sensor data and (ii) the second sensor data. In someimplementations, the monitoring system may use the second sensor data tocorroborate the first sensor data. Determining whether to trigger theevent based on the (i) first sensors data and (ii) the second sensordata may include, for example, the monitoring system delaying thetriggering of an alarm based on the first sensor data until themonitoring system control until detects the second sensor data. In someimplementations, if the monitoring system does not receive second sensordata within a predetermined time period, the monitoring system maytrigger an alarm event based on the first sensor data alone.

In response to determining that the drone-mounted sensor data does nottrigger an alarm, the monitoring system determines to disregard 450 thefirst sensor data and does not trigger a potential alarm. Alternatively,in response to determining that the drone-mounted sensor data doestrigger an alarm, the monitoring system instructs the monitoring systemto trigger 470 an alarm.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of another example of a process 500 for allowingdrone activity to modify event detection by a monitoring system.Generally, the process 500 includes detecting, based on sensor data fromone or more indoor sensors, one or more characteristics of a drone(510), generating a drone signature based on the one or morecharacteristics (520), comparing the drone signature to a predefineddrone signature (530), and determining whether to disable one or moreservices provided by the indoor sensor based on the comparison (540). Inresponse to determining that the generated drone signature and thepredefined drone signature match, disabling one or more servicesprovided by the sensor (560). Alternatively, in response to determiningthat the generated drone signature and the predefined drone signature donot match, enabling one or more services provided by the sensor (570).For convenience, the process 500 is further described below as beingperformed by a monitoring system such as the monitoring system 100 or200, as described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

The monitoring system can detect 510, based on sensor data generated byone or more indoor sensors, one or more characteristics of a drone.Characteristics of the drone may include, for example, images of theprofile of the drone, video of the profile of the drone, images of thenumber of propellers of the drone, video of the number of propellers ofthe drone, images of the area surrounding the drone, video of the areasurrounding the drone, audio signals of the sound of the drone'spropellers, audio signals of the sound of the drone's propulsionsystems, radar detection of the speed of the drone, radiofrequencydetection of the oscillation in electrical circuits of the drone,thermal signals generated from by the drone device, detection of RFcommunications to/from the drone, a combination thereof, or the like.

The monitoring system can generate 520 a drone signature based on theone or more characteristics of the drone that is detected inside theproperty. The drone signature may be based on a representation of theone or more drone characteristics detected at stage 510. In oneimplementation, a particular characteristic of the characteristicsdetected at stage 510 may be used to generate the drone signature.Alternatively, in other implementations, a collection of two or more ofthe characteristics obtained at stage 510 may be used to generate thedrone signature. The drone signature can be used as a unique identifierthat distinguishes the detected drone from other drone devices.

The monitoring system can compare 530 the generated drone signature to apredefined drone signature. Comparing the generated drone signature to apredefined drone signature may include, for example, using the generateddrone signature to search a database one or more authorized dronesignatures. The database of authorized drone signatures may include, forexample, a drone signature of each drone that is authorized to navigatewithin the property. If the generated drone signature is determined tomatch a predefined drone signature within a predetermined amount oferror, then the drone associated with the generated drone signature maybe determined to be an authorized drone. Alternatively, if the generateddrone signature is determined to not match a predefined drone signaturewithin a predetermined amount of error, then the drone associated withthe generated drone signature is determined to be an unauthorized drone.

The monitoring system may determine 540 whether to disable one or moreservices provided by the indoor sensor based on the comparison. Inresponse to determining that the generated drone signature and thepredefined drone signature match within a predetermined amount of error,the monitoring system may disable 560 one or more services provided bythe sensor. In some implementations, for example, a camera may includeone or more sensors that are capable of triggering the sensor service of(i) capturing one or more images, (ii) capturing video, (iii) capturingaudio, (iv) a combination thereof, or the like. In such instances, thesensors can generate data that is used by the monitoring system togenerate drone signature. And, if the generated drone signature matchesa predefined and authorized drone signature, then the monitoring systemcan instruct the camera to (i) not capture images of the authorizeddrone, (ii) not capture video of the authorized drone, (iii) not captureaudio of the authorized drone, (iv) a combination thereof, or the like.

Alternatively, in response to determining that the generated dronesignature and the predefined drone signature do not match, themonitoring system may enable 570 one or more services provided by theone or more indoor sensors. For example, if the monitoring systemdetermines that the generated drone signature fails to match apredefined and authorized drone signature, then the monitoring systemcan instruct the camera to (i) capture images of the authorized drone,(ii) capture video of the authorized drone, (iii) capture audio of theauthorized drone, (iv) a combination thereof, or the like.

Use of the aforementioned process 500 may provide multiple advantages.For, example, the process 500 may help the monitoring system avoidtriggering a false alarm in response to detecting presence, sound,movement, or the like from an authorized drone. Alternatively, theprocess 500 may help to optimize monitoring system resources. Forexample, not turning on the camera in response to the detection of anauthorized drone may help to reduce to network bandwidth used to streamimages, audio, video, or the like to a monitoring system storagelocation. Similarly, for example, not turning on the camera in responseto the detection of an authorized drone may help to reduce the storageresources required to store images, audio, videos captured by themonitoring system.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of some example components that can be used toimplement a system for allowing drone activity to modify event detectionby a monitoring system.

The electronic system 600 includes a network 605, a monitoring systemcontrol unit 610, one or more user devices 640, 650, a monitoringapplication server 660, and a central alarm station server 670. In someexamples, the network 605 facilitates communications between themonitoring system control unit 610, the one or more user devices 640,650, the monitoring application server 660, and the central alarmstation server 670.

The network 605 is configured to enable exchange of electroniccommunications between devices connected to the network 605. Forexample, the network 605 may be configured to enable exchange ofelectronic communications between the monitoring system control unit610, the one or more user devices 640, 650, the monitoring applicationserver 660, and the central alarm station server 670. The network 605may include, for example, one or more of the Internet, Wide AreaNetworks (WANs), Local Area Networks (LANs), analog or digital wired andwireless telephone networks (e.g., a public switched telephone network(PSTN), Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), a cellular network,and Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)), radio, television, cable, satellite,or any other delivery or tunneling mechanism for carrying data. Network605 may include multiple networks or subnetworks, each of which mayinclude, for example, a wired or wireless data pathway. The network 605may include a circuit-switched network, a packet-switched data network,or any other network able to carry electronic communications (e.g., dataor voice communications). For example, the network 605 may includenetworks based on the Internet protocol (IP), asynchronous transfer mode(ATM), the PSTN, packet-switched networks based on IP, X.25, or FrameRelay, or other comparable technologies and may support voice using, forexample, VoIP, or other comparable protocols used for voicecommunications. The network 605 may include one or more networks thatinclude wireless data channels and wireless voice channels. The network605 may be a wireless network, a broadband network, or a combination ofnetworks including a wireless network and a broadband network.

The monitoring system control unit 610 includes a controller 612 and anetwork module 614. The controller 612 is configured to control amonitoring system (e.g., a home alarm or security system) that includesthe monitoring system control unit 610. In some examples, the controller612 may include a processor or other control circuitry configured toexecute instructions of a program that controls operation of an alarmsystem. In these examples, the controller 612 may be configured toreceive input from sensors, detectors, or other devices included in thealarm system and control operations of devices included in the alarmsystem or other household devices (e.g., a thermostat, an appliance,lights, etc.). For example, the controller 612 may be configured tocontrol operation of the network module 614 included in the monitoringsystem control unit 610.

The monitoring system control unit 610 may be configured to detectsensor data from one or more sensors 620 is indicative of a potentialalarm event. Alternatively, or in addition, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610 may be configured to detect sensor data and relay thesensor data to the monitoring application server 660 for processing andanalysis. In some implementations, one or more sensors 620 maycommunicate directly with the monitoring application server 660.

The monitoring system control unit 610, monitoring application server660, or both, may be configured to disregard (e.g., ignore) sensor datagenerated by sensors 620, cameras 630, or the like. In someimplementations, the monitoring system control unit 610 may disregard(e.g., ignore) sensor data generated by one or more sensors 620 if it isdetermined that a drone is located within a predetermined distance ofthe sensors 620. In such instance, the monitoring system control unit610 may disregard (e.g., ignore) sensor data generated by one or moresensors 620 for at least a predetermined amount of time after it isdetermined that drone is within a predetermined distance of the sensors620. In yet other implementations, the monitoring system control unit610 can instruct a sensor 620 to deactivate, go into low-power shutdownmode, or the like in response to determining that robotic device 680 and682 is within a predetermined distance of the sensors 620.

The monitoring system control unit 610, monitoring application server660, or both, may disregard (e.g., ignore) sensor data, camera data, orboth generated by sensors 620 and cameras 630 within a predetermineddistance of robotic devices 680 and 682. The monitoring system controlunit 610 may continue to disregard (e.g., ignore) the sensor data,camera data, or both until the drone moves more than a predetermineddistance away from the sensors 620, the cameras 630, or both.Alternatively, or in addition, the monitoring system control unit 610may continue to disregard (e.g., ignore) the sensor data, the cameradata, or both until the drone-mounted sensors 680 a, 682 a generatesensor data that corroborates sensor data generated by the sensors 620.

The network module 614 is a communication device configured to exchangecommunications over the network 605. The network module 614 may be awireless communication module configured to exchange wirelesscommunications over the network 605. For example, the network module 614may be a wireless communication device configured to exchangecommunications over a wireless data channel and a wireless voicechannel. In this example, the network module 614 may transmit alarm dataover a wireless data channel and establish a two-way voice communicationsession over a wireless voice channel. The wireless communication devicemay include one or more of a LTE module, a GSM module, a radio modem,cellular transmission module, or any type of module configured toexchange communications in one of the following formats: LTE, GSM orGPRS, CDMA, EDGE or EGPRS, EV-DO or EVDO, UMTS, or IP.

The network module 614 also may be a wired communication moduleconfigured to exchange communications over the network 605 using a wiredconnection. For instance, the network module 614 may be a modem, anetwork interface card, or another type of network interface device. Thenetwork module 614 may be an Ethernet network card configured to enablethe monitoring system control unit 610 to communicate over a local areanetwork and/or the Internet. The network module 614 also may be avoiceband modem configured to enable the alarm panel to communicate overthe telephone lines of Plain Old Telephone Systems (POTS).

The monitoring system that includes the monitoring system control unit610 includes one or more sensors or detectors. For example, themonitoring system may include multiple sensors 620. The sensors 620 mayinclude a contact sensor, a motion sensor, a glass break sensor, or anyother type of sensor included in an alarm system or security system. Thesensors 620 also may include an environmental sensor, such as atemperature sensor, a water sensor, a rain sensor, a wind sensor, alight sensor, a smoke detector, a carbon monoxide detector, an airquality sensor, etc. The sensors 620 further may include a healthmonitoring sensor, such as a prescription bottle sensor that monitorstaking of prescriptions, a blood pressure sensor, a blood sugar sensor,a bed mat configured to sense presence of liquid (e.g., bodily fluids)on the bed mat, etc. In some examples, the sensors 620 may include aradio-frequency identification (RFID) sensor that identifies aparticular article that includes a pre-assigned RFID tag.

The monitoring system control unit 610 communicates with the module 622and the camera 630 to perform surveillance or monitoring. The module 622is connected to one or more devices that enable home automation control.For instance, the module 622 may be connected to one or more lightingsystems and may be configured to control operation of the one or morelighting systems. Also, the module 622 may be connected to one or moreelectronic locks at the property and may be configured to controloperation of the one or more electronic locks (e.g., control Z-Wavelocks using wireless communications in the Z-Wave protocol. Further, themodule 622 may be connected to one or more appliances at the propertyand may be configured to control operation of the one or moreappliances. The module 622 may include multiple modules that are eachspecific to the type of device being controlled in an automated manner.The module 622 may control the one or more devices based on commandsreceived from the monitoring system control unit 610. For instance, themodule 622 may cause a lighting system to illuminate an area to providea better image of the area when captured by a camera 630.

The camera 630 may be a video/photographic camera or other type ofoptical sensing device configured to capture images. For instance, thecamera 630 may be configured to capture images of an area within abuilding monitored by the monitoring system control unit 610. The camera630 may be configured to capture single, static images of the area andalso video images of the area in which multiple images of the area arecaptured at a relatively high frequency (e.g., thirty images persecond). The camera 630 may be controlled based on commands receivedfrom the monitoring system control unit 610.

The camera 630 may be triggered by several different types oftechniques. For instance, a Passive Infra Red (PIR) motion sensor may bebuilt into the camera 630 and used to trigger the camera 630 to captureone or more images when motion is detected. The camera 630 also mayinclude a microwave motion sensor built into the camera and used totrigger the camera 630 to capture one or more images when motion isdetected. The camera 630 may have a “normally open” or “normally closed”digital input that can trigger capture of one or more images whenexternal sensors (e.g., the sensors 620, PIR, door/window, etc.) detectmotion or other events. In some implementations, the camera 630 receivesa command to capture an image when external devices detect motion oranother potential alarm event. The camera 630 may receive the commandfrom the controller 612 or directly from one of the sensors 620.

In some examples, the camera 630 triggers integrated or externalilluminators (e.g., Infra Red, Z-wave controlled “white” lights, lightscontrolled by the module 622, etc.) to improve image quality when thescene is dark. An integrated or separate light sensor may be used todetermine if illumination is desired and may result in increased imagequality.

The camera 630 may be programmed with any combination of time/dayschedules, system “arming state”, or other variables to determinewhether images should be captured or not when triggers occur. The camera630 may enter a low-power mode when not capturing images. In this case,the camera 630 may wake periodically to check for inbound messages fromthe controller 612. The camera 630 may be powered by internal,replaceable batteries if located remotely from the monitoring controlunit 610. The camera 630 may employ a small solar cell to recharge thebattery when light is available. Alternatively, the camera 630 may bepowered by the controller's 612 power supply if the camera 630 isco-located with the controller 612.

In some implementations, the camera 630 communicates directly with themonitoring application server 660 over the Internet. In theseimplementations, image data captured by the camera 630 does not passthrough the monitoring system control unit 610 and the camera 630receives commands related to operation from the monitoring applicationserver 660.

The system 600 also includes thermostat 634 to perform dynamicenvironmental control at the property. The thermostat 634 is configuredto monitor temperature and/or energy consumption of an HVAC systemassociated with the thermostat 634, and is further configured to providecontrol of environmental (e.g., temperature) settings. In someimplementations, the thermostat 634 can additionally or alternativelyreceive data relating to activity at a property and/or environmentaldata at a property, e.g., at various locations indoors and outdoors atthe property. The thermostat 634 can directly measure energy consumptionof the HVAC system associated with the thermostat, or can estimateenergy consumption of the HVAC system associated with the thermostat634, for example, based on detected usage of one or more components ofthe HVAC system associated with the thermostat 634. The thermostat 634can communicate temperature and/or energy monitoring information to orfrom the monitoring system control unit 610 and can control theenvironmental (e.g., temperature) settings based on commands receivedfrom the monitoring system control unit 610.

In some implementations, the thermostat 634 is a dynamicallyprogrammable thermostat and can be integrated with the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610. For example, the dynamically programmable thermostat634 can include the monitoring system control unit 610, e.g., as aninternal component to the dynamically programmable thermostat 634. Inaddition, the monitoring system control unit 610 can be a gateway devicethat communicates with the dynamically programmable thermostat 634.

A module 637 is connected to one or more components of an HVAC systemassociated with a property, and is configured to control operation ofthe one or more components of the HVAC system. In some implementations,the module 637 is also configured to monitor energy consumption of theHVAC system components, for example, by directly measuring the energyconsumption of the HVAC system components or by estimating the energyusage of the one or more HVAC system components based on detecting usageof components of the HVAC system. The module 637 can communicate energymonitoring information and the state of the HVAC system components tothe thermostat 634 and can control the one or more components of theHVAC system based on commands received from the thermostat 634.

The system 600 further includes one or more robotic devices 680 and 682.The robotic devices 680 and 682 may be any type of robots that arecapable of moving and taking actions that assist in security monitoring.For example, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may include drones that arecapable of moving throughout a property based on automated controltechnology and/or user input control provided by a user. In thisexample, the drones may be able to fly, roll, walk, or otherwise moveabout the property. The drones may include helicopter type devices(e.g., quad copters), rolling helicopter type devices (e.g., rollercopter devices that can fly and also roll along the ground, walls, orceiling) and land vehicle type devices (e.g., automated cars that drivearound a property). In some cases, the robotic devices 680 and 682 maybe robotic devices that are intended for other purposes and merelyassociated with the monitoring system 600 for use in appropriatecircumstances. For instance, a robotic vacuum cleaner device may beassociated with the monitoring system 600 as one of the robotic devices680 and 682 and may be controlled to take action responsive tomonitoring system events.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 automatically navigatewithin a property. In these examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682include sensors and control processors that guide movement of therobotic devices 680 and 682 within the property. For instance, therobotic devices 680 and 682 may navigate within the property using oneor more cameras, one or more proximity sensors, one or more gyroscopes,one or more accelerometers, one or more magnetometers, a globalpositioning system (GPS) unit, an altimeter, one or more sonar or lasersensors, and/or any other types of sensors that aid in navigation abouta space. The robotic devices 680 and 682 may include control processorsthat process output from the various sensors and control the roboticdevices 680 and 682 to move along a path that reaches the desireddestination and avoids obstacles. In this regard, the control processorsdetect walls or other obstacles in the property and guide movement ofthe robotic devices 680 and 682 in a manner that avoids the walls andother obstacles.

In addition, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may store data thatdescribes attributes of the property. For instance, the robotic devices680 and 682 may store a floorplan and/or a three-dimensional model ofthe property that enables the robotic devices 680 and 682 to navigatethe property. During initial configuration, the robotic devices 680 and682 may receive the data describing attributes of the property,determine a frame of reference to the data (e.g., a home or referencelocation in the property), and navigate the property based on the frameof reference and the data describing attributes of the property.Further, initial configuration of the robotic devices 680 and 682 alsomay include learning of one or more navigation patterns in which a userprovides input to control the robotic devices 680 and 682 to perform aspecific navigation action (e.g., fly to an upstairs bedroom and spinaround while capturing video and then return to a home charging base).In this regard, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may learn and store thenavigation patterns such that the robotic devices 680 and 682 mayautomatically repeat the specific navigation actions upon a laterrequest.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may include one ormore drone-mounted sensors 680 a and 682 a that are configured toperform property monitoring, data capture, and recording of images,video, audio, and like. In these examples, the robotic devices 680 and682 drone-mounted sensors 680 a and 682 a may include one or morecameras, one or more motion sensors, one or more glass-break sensors,one or more microphones, one or more biometric data collection tools,one or more temperature sensors, one or more humidity sensors, one ormore air flow sensors, and/or any other types of sensors that may beuseful in capturing monitoring data related to the property and users inthe property. The one or more biometric data collection tools may beconfigured to collect biometric samples of a person in the home with orwithout contact of the person. For instance, the biometric datacollection tools may include a fingerprint scanner, a hair samplecollection tool, a skin cell collection tool, and/or any other tool thatallows the robotic devices 680 and 682 to take and store a biometricsample that can be used to identify the person (e.g., a biometric samplewith DNA that can be used for DNA testing). In some implementations,sensor data related to the property can be generated, captured,collected, or otherwise obtained using the drone-mounted sensors 680 aand 682 a and used to corroborate sensor generated by one or moresensors 620.

In some implementations, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may includeoutput devices. In these implementations, the robotic devices 680 and682 may include one or more displays, one or more speakers, one or moreprojectors, and/or any type of output devices that allow the roboticdevices 680 and 682 to communicate information to a nearby user. The oneor more projectors may include projectors that project a two-dimensionalimage onto a surface (e.g., wall, floor, or ceiling) and/or holographicprojectors that project three-dimensional holograms into a nearby space.

The robotic devices 680 and 682 also may include a communication module680 b and 682 b that enables the robotic devices 680 and 682 tocommunicate with the monitoring system control unit 610, each other,and/or other devices. The communication module 680 b and 682 b may be awireless communication module that allows the robotic devices 680 and682 to communicate wirelessly. For instance, the communication module680 b and 682 b may be a Wi-Fi module that enables the robotic devices680 and 682 to communicate over a local wireless network at theproperty. The communication module 680 b and 682 b further may be a 900MHz wireless communication module that enables the robotic devices 680and 682 to communicate directly with the monitoring system control unit610. Other types of short-range wireless communication protocols, suchas Bluetooth, Bluetooth LE, Zwave, Zigbee, etc., may be used by thecommunication module 680 b and 682 b to allow the robotic devices 680and 682 to communicate with other devices in the property. The roboticdevices 680 and 682 can use the communication module 680 b and 682 b tobroadcast sensor data generated by one or more drone-mounted sensors 680a and 682 a via the network 605, one or more communications links 684and 686, or a combination thereof that can be detected by the monitorcontrol unit 610, the monitoring application server 660, or both.

The robotic devices 680 and 682 further may include processor andstorage capabilities. The robotic devices 680 and 682 may include anysuitable processing devices that enable the robotic devices 680 and 682to operate applications and perform the actions described throughoutthis disclosure. In addition, the robotic devices 680 and 682 mayinclude solid state electronic storage that enables the robotic devices680 and 682 to store applications, configuration data, collected sensordata, and/or any other type of information available to the roboticdevices 680 and 682.

The robotic devices 680 and 682 are associated with one or more chargingstations 690 and 692. The charging stations 690 and 692 may be locatedat predefined home base or reference locations in the property. Therobotic devices 680 and 682 may be configured to navigate to thecharging stations 690 and 692 after completion of tasks needed to beperformed for the monitoring system 600. For instance, after completionof a monitoring operation or upon instruction by the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may be configured toautomatically fly to and land on one of the charging stations 690 and692. In this regard, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may automaticallymaintain a fully charged battery in a state in which the robotic devices680 and 682 are ready for use by the monitoring system 600.

The charging stations 690 and 692 may be contact based charging stationsand/or wireless charging stations. For contact based charging stations,the robotic devices 680 and 682 may have readily accessible points ofcontact that the robotic devices 680 and 682 are capable of positioningand mating with a corresponding contact on the charging station. Forinstance, a helicopter type robotic device may have an electroniccontact on a portion of its landing gear that rests on and mates with anelectronic pad of a charging station when the helicopter type roboticdevice lands on the charging station. The electronic contact on therobotic device may include a cover that opens to expose the electroniccontact when the robotic device is charging and closes to cover andinsulate the electronic contact when the robotic device is in operation.

For wireless charging stations, the robotic devices 680 and 682 maycharge through a wireless exchange of power. In these cases, the roboticdevices 680 and 682 need only locate themselves closely enough to thewireless charging stations for the wireless exchange of power to occur.In this regard, the positioning needed to land at a predefined home baseor reference location in the property may be less precise than with acontact based charging station. Based on the robotic devices 680 and 682landing at a wireless charging station, the wireless charging stationoutputs a wireless signal that the robotic devices 680 and 682 receiveand convert to a power signal that charges a battery maintained on therobotic devices 680 and 682.

In some implementations, each of the robotic devices 680 and 682 has acorresponding and assigned charging station 690 and 692 such that thenumber of robotic devices 680 and 682 equals the number of chargingstations 690 and 692. In these implementations, the robotic devices 680and 682 always navigate to the specific charging station assigned tothat robotic device. For instance, the robotic device 680 may always usechanging station 690 and the robotic device 682 may always use changingstation 692.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may share chargingstations. For instance, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may use one ormore community charging stations that are capable of charging multiplerobotic devices 680 and 682. The community charging station may beconfigured to charge multiple robotic devices 680 and 682 in parallel.The community charging station may be configured to charge multiplerobotic devices 680 and 682 in serial such that the multiple roboticdevices 680 and 682 take turns charging and, when fully charged, returnto a predefined home base or reference location in the property that isnot associated with a charger. The number of community charging stationsmay be less than the number of robotic devices 680 and 682.

Also, the charging stations 690 and 692 may not be assigned to specificrobotic devices 680 and 682 and may be capable of charging any of therobotic devices 680 and 682. In this regard, the robotic devices 680 and682 may use any suitable, unoccupied charging station when not in use.For instance, when one of the robotic devices 680 and 682 has completedan operation or is in need of battery charge, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610 references a stored table of the occupancy status ofeach charging station and instructs the robotic device to navigate tothe nearest charging station that is unoccupied.

The sensors 620, the module 622, the camera 630, the thermostat 634, andthe robotic devices 680 and 682 communicate with the controller 612 overcommunication links 624, 626, 628, 632, 684, and 686. The communicationlinks 624, 626, 628, 632, 684, and 686 may be a wired or wireless datapathway configured to transmit signals from the sensors 620, the module622, the camera 630, the thermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and682 to the controller 612. The sensors 620, the module 622, the camera630, the thermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682 maycontinuously transmit sensed values to the controller 612, periodicallytransmit sensed values to the controller 612, or transmit sensed valuesto the controller 612 in response to a change in a sensed value.

The communication links 624, 626, 628, 632, 684, and 686 may include alocal network. The sensors 620, the module 622, the camera 630, thethermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682 and the controller612 may exchange data and commands over the local network. The localnetwork may include 802.11 “WiFi” wireless Ethernet (e.g., usinglow-power WiFi chipsets), Z-Wave, Zigbee, Bluetooth, “Homeplug” or other“Powerline” networks that operate over AC wiring, and a Category 5(CATS) or Category 6 (CAT6) wired Ethernet network. The local networkmay be a mesh network constructed based on the devices connected to themesh network.

The monitoring application server 660 is an electronic device configuredto provide monitoring services by exchanging electronic communicationswith the monitoring system control unit 610, the one or more userdevices 640, 650, and the central alarm station server 670 over thenetwork 605. For example, the monitoring application server 660 may beconfigured to monitor events (e.g., alarm events) generated by themonitoring system control unit 610. In this example, the monitoringapplication server 660 may exchange electronic communications with thenetwork module 614 included in the monitoring system control unit 610 toreceive information regarding events (e.g., alarm events) detected bythe monitoring system control unit 610. The monitoring applicationserver 660 also may receive information regarding events (e.g., alarmevents) from the one or more user devices 640, 650.

In some examples, the monitoring application server 660 may route alarmdata received from the network module 614 or the one or more userdevices 640, 650 to the central alarm station server 670. For example,the monitoring application server 660 may transmit the alarm data to thecentral alarm station server 670 over the network 605.

The monitoring application server 660 may store sensor and image datareceived from the monitoring system and perform analysis of sensor andimage data received from the monitoring system. Based on the analysis,the monitoring application server 660 may communicate with and controlaspects of the monitoring system control unit 610 or the one or moreuser devices 640, 650.

The central alarm station server 670 is an electronic device configuredto provide alarm monitoring service by exchanging communications withthe monitoring system control unit 610, the one or more mobile devices640, 650, and the monitoring application server 660 over the network605. For example, the central alarm station server 670 may be configuredto monitor alarm events generated by the monitoring system control unit610. In this example, the central alarm station server 670 may exchangecommunications with the network module 614 included in the monitoringsystem control unit 610 to receive information regarding alarm eventsdetected by the monitoring system control unit 610. The central alarmstation server 670 also may receive information regarding alarm eventsfrom the one or more mobile devices 640, 650 and/or the monitoringapplication server 660.

The central alarm station server 670 is connected to multiple terminals672 and 674. The terminals 672 and 674 may be used by operators toprocess alarm events. For example, the central alarm station server 670may route alarm data to the terminals 672 and 674 to enable an operatorto process the alarm data. The terminals 672 and 674 may includegeneral-purpose computers (e.g., desktop personal computers,workstations, or laptop computers) that are configured to receive alarmdata from a server in the central alarm station server 670 and render adisplay of information based on the alarm data. For instance, thecontroller 612 may control the network module 614 to transmit, to thecentral alarm station server 670, alarm data indicating that a sensor620 detected a door opening when the monitoring system was armed. Thecentral alarm station server 670 may receive the alarm data and routethe alarm data to the terminal 672 for processing by an operatorassociated with the terminal 672. The terminal 672 may render a displayto the operator that includes information associated with the alarmevent (e.g., the name of the user of the alarm system, the address ofthe building the alarm system is monitoring, the type of alarm event,etc.) and the operator may handle the alarm event based on the displayedinformation.

In some implementations, the terminals 672 and 674 may be mobile devicesor devices designed for a specific function. Although FIG. 6 illustratestwo terminals for brevity, actual implementations may include more (and,perhaps, many more) terminals.

The one or more user devices 640, 650 are devices that host and displayuser interfaces. For instance, the user device 640 is a mobile devicethat hosts one or more native applications (e.g., the nativesurveillance application 642). The user device 640 may be a cellularphone or a non-cellular locally networked device with a display. Theuser device 640 may include a cell phone, a smart phone, a tablet PC, apersonal digital assistant (“PDA”), or any other portable deviceconfigured to communicate over a network and display information. Forexample, implementations may also include Blackberry-type devices (e.g.,as provided by Research in Motion), electronic organizers, iPhone-typedevices (e.g., as provided by Apple), iPod devices (e.g., as provided byApple) or other portable music players, other communication devices, andhandheld or portable electronic devices for gaming, communications,and/or data organization. The user device 640 may perform functionsunrelated to the monitoring system, such as placing personal telephonecalls, playing music, playing video, displaying pictures, browsing theInternet, maintaining an electronic calendar, etc.

The user device 640 includes a native surveillance application 642. Thenative surveillance application 642 refers to a software/firmwareprogram running on the corresponding mobile device that enables the userinterface and features described throughout. The user device 640 mayload or install the native surveillance application 642 based on datareceived over a network or data received from local media. The nativesurveillance application 642 runs on mobile devices platforms, such asiPhone, iPod touch, Blackberry, Google Android, Windows Mobile, etc. Thenative surveillance application 642 enables the user device 640 toreceive and process image and sensor data from the monitoring system.

The user device 650 may be a general-purpose computer (e.g., a desktoppersonal computer, a workstation, or a laptop computer) that isconfigured to communicate with the monitoring application server 660and/or the monitoring system control unit 610 over the network 605. Theuser device 650 may be configured to display a surveillance monitoringuser interface 652 that is generated by the user device 650 or generatedby the monitoring application server 660. For example, the user device650 may be configured to display a user interface (e.g., a web page)provided by the monitoring application server 660 that enables a user toperceive images captured by the camera 630 and/or reports related to themonitoring system. Although FIG. 6 illustrates two user devices forbrevity, actual implementations may include more (and, perhaps, manymore) or fewer user devices.

In some implementations, the one or more user devices 640, 650communicate with and receive monitoring system data from the monitoringsystem control unit 610 using the communication link 638. For instance,the one or more user devices 640, 650 may communicate with themonitoring system control unit 610 using various local wirelessprotocols such as wifi, Bluetooth, zwave, zigbee, HomePlug (ethernetover powerline), or wired protocols such as Ethernet and USB, to connectthe one or more user devices 640, 650 to local security and automationequipment. The one or more user devices 640, 650 may connect locally tothe monitoring system and its sensors and other devices. The localconnection may improve the speed of status and control communicationsbecause communicating through the network 605 with a remote server(e.g., the monitoring application server 660) may be significantlyslower.

Although the one or more user devices 640, 650 are shown ascommunicating with the monitoring system control unit 610, the one ormore user devices 640, 650 may communicate directly with the sensors andother devices controlled by the monitoring system control unit 610. Insome implementations, the one or more user devices 640, 650 replace themonitoring system control unit 610 and perform the functions of themonitoring system control unit 610 for local monitoring and longrange/offsite communication.

In other implementations, the one or more user devices 640, 650 receivemonitoring system data captured by the monitoring system control unit610 through the network 605. The one or more user devices 640, 650 mayreceive the data from the monitoring system control unit 610 through thenetwork 605 or the monitoring application server 660 may relay datareceived from the monitoring system control unit 610 to the one or moreuser devices 640, 650 through the network 605. In this regard, themonitoring application server 660 may facilitate communication betweenthe one or more user devices 640, 650 and the monitoring system.

In some implementations, the one or more user devices 640, 650 may beconfigured to switch whether the one or more user devices 640, 650communicate with the monitoring system control unit 610 directly (e.g.,through link 638) or through the monitoring application server 660(e.g., through network 605) based on a location of the one or more userdevices 640, 650. For instance, when the one or more user devices 640,650 are located close to the monitoring system control unit 610 and inrange to communicate directly with the monitoring system control unit610, the one or more user devices 640, 650 use direct communication.When the one or more user devices 640, 650 are located far from themonitoring system control unit 610 and not in range to communicatedirectly with the monitoring system control unit 610, the one or moreuser devices 640, 650 use communication through the monitoringapplication server 660.

Although the one or more user devices 640, 650 are shown as beingconnected to the network 605, in some implementations, the one or moreuser devices 640, 650 are not connected to the network 605. In theseimplementations, the one or more user devices 640, 650 communicatedirectly with one or more of the monitoring system components and nonetwork (e.g., Internet) connection or reliance on remote servers isneeded.

In some implementations, the one or more user devices 640, 650 are usedin conjunction with only local sensors and/or local devices in a house.In these implementations, the system 600 only includes the one or moreuser devices 640, 650, the sensors 620, the module 622, the camera 630,and the robotic devices 680 and 682. The one or more user devices 640,650 receive data directly from the sensors 620, the module 622, thecamera 630, and the robotic devices 680 and 682 and sends data directlyto the sensors 620, the module 622, the camera 630, and the roboticdevices 680 and 682. The one or more user devices 640, 650 provide theappropriate interfaces/processing to provide visual surveillance andreporting.

In other implementations, the system 600 further includes network 605and the sensors 620, the module 622, the camera 630, the thermostat 634,and the robotic devices 680 and 682 are configured to communicate sensorand image data to the one or more user devices 640, 650 over network 605(e.g., the Internet, cellular network, etc.). In yet anotherimplementation, the sensors 620, the module 622, the camera 630, thethermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682 (or a component,such as a bridge/router) are intelligent enough to change thecommunication pathway from a direct local pathway when the one or moreuser devices 640, 650 are in close physical proximity to the sensors620, the module 622, the camera 630, the thermostat 634, and the roboticdevices 680 and 682 to a pathway over network 605 when the one or moreuser devices 640, 650 are farther from the sensors 620, the module 622,the camera 630, the thermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682.In some examples, the system leverages GPS information from the one ormore user devices 640, 650 to determine whether the one or more userdevices 640, 650 are close enough to the sensors 620, the module 622,the camera 630, the thermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682to use the direct local pathway or whether the one or more user devices640, 650 are far enough from the sensors 620, the module 622, the camera630, the thermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682 that thepathway over network 605 is required. In other examples, the systemleverages status communications (e.g., pinging) between the one or moreuser devices 640, 650 and the sensors 620, the module 622, the camera630, the thermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682 todetermine whether communication using the direct local pathway ispossible. If communication using the direct local pathway is possible,the one or more user devices 640, 650 communicate with the sensors 620,the module 622, the camera 630, the thermostat 634, and the roboticdevices 680 and 682 using the direct local pathway. If communicationusing the direct local pathway is not possible, the one or more userdevices 640, 650 communicate with the sensors 620, the module 622, thecamera 630, the thermostat 634, and the robotic devices 680 and 682using the pathway over network 605.

In some implementations, the system 600 provides end users with accessto images captured by the camera 630 to aid in decision making. Thesystem 600 may transmit the images captured by the camera 630 over awireless WAN network to the user devices 640, 650. Because transmissionover a wireless WAN network may be relatively expensive, the system 600uses several techniques to reduce costs while providing access tosignificant levels of useful visual information.

In some implementations, a state of the monitoring system and otherevents sensed by the monitoring system may be used to enable/disablevideo/image recording devices (e.g., the camera 630). In theseimplementations, the camera 630 may be set to capture images on aperiodic basis when the alarm system is armed in an “Away” state, butset not to capture images when the alarm system is armed in a “Stay”state or disarmed. In addition, the camera 630 may be triggered to begincapturing images when the alarm system detects an event, such as analarm event, a door opening event for a door that leads to an areawithin a field of view of the camera 630, or motion in the area withinthe field of view of the camera 630. In other implementations, thecamera 630 may capture images continuously, but the captured images maybe stored or transmitted over a network when needed.

Further, in some implementations, the system 600 intelligently leveragesthe robotic devices 680 and 682 to aid in security monitoring, propertyautomation, and property management. For example, the robotic devices680 and 682 may aid in investigating alarm events detected at theproperty by the monitoring system control unit 610. In this example, themonitoring system control unit 610 may detect an alarm event (e.g., afire alarm, an entry into the property when the system is armed “Stay,”etc.) and, based on the detected alarm event, control the roboticdevices 680 and 682 to attempt to identify persons in the property atthe time of the alarm event. Specifically, the monitoring system controlunit 610 may send a control command to each of the robotic devices 680and 682 that causes the robotic devices 680 and 682 to perform acoordinated and automated search for persons in the property. Based onthe control command received, each of the robotic devices 680 and 682begins navigating the property and captures images of the property whilenavigating. Each of the robotic devices 680 and 682 may execute apredefined navigation pattern within the property or the robotic devices680 and 682 may execute a coordinated scan of the property in which therobotic devices 680 and 682 exchange location information and navigateto areas that have not been explored by one of the other devices.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may analyze the imagescaptured during the scan of the property for the presence of persons inthe captured images. For instance, the robotic devices 680 and 682 mayuse image processing techniques in an attempt to identify shapes in thecaptured images that resemble a human body. The robotic devices 680 and682 also may analyze the images for moving objects (or use othertechniques to identify moving objects) and target imaging on capture ofmoving objects.

Based on detection of a human or a moving object, the robotic devices680 and 682 may lock onto the human or moving object and follow thehuman or moving object throughout the property. In this regard, therobotic devices 680 and 682 may follow the human or moving objectthroughout the property and capture images of the movement. In addition,once one of the robotic devices 680 and 682 locks onto a human or movingobject, the robotic devices 680 and 682 coordinate to ensure thatmultiple of the robotic devices 680 and 682 do not lock onto the samehuman or moving object. The coordination may be direct amongst therobotic devices 680 and 682 and/or through the monitoring system controlunit 610. The coordination may involve sharing the location of the humanor moving object and/or attributes of the human or moving object beingimaged. Based on the shared location and attributes, the robotic devices680 and 682 may determine whether multiple robotic devices 680 and 682have locked onto the same object and take action accordingly. If therobotic devices 680 and 682 determine that the robotic devices 680 and682 have not locked onto the same object, the appropriate one of therobotic devices 680 and 682 continues to lock onto the object while theother robotic devices scan other areas of the property for otherobjects. If the robotic devices 680 and 682 determine that the roboticdevices 680 and 682 have locked onto the same object, the roboticdevices 680 and 682 negotiate to determine which of the robotic devices680 and 682 will continue to lock onto the object while the otherrobotic devices stop locking onto the object and scan other areas of theproperty for other objects. The negotiation may select the roboticdevice that continues tracking the object based on one or more factorsincluding the timing of when the devices locked onto the object (e.g.,which device locked onto the object first), the positioning of thedevices relative to the object (e.g., which is best positioned to imagethe object), the amount of battery power remaining (e.g., the devicewith the most battery power remaining), or any other factor thatindicates the device most suited to track the object. To the extent thedevice tracking an object becomes less suitable for tracking the object(e.g., the battery power is running low), the robotic devices 680 and682 may coordinate to hand off tracking of the object to another one ofthe robotic devices 680 and 682.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 perform imagerecognition processing on the one or more images in an attempt to detectwhether any identified humans are legitimate users of the property orintruders. In these examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may haveaccess to images of legitimate users of the property and may compareimages being captured to the accessed images of legitimate users. Basedon the comparison, the robotic devices 680 and 682 use facialrecognition techniques to determine whether the imaged user matches alegitimate user of the property or an intruder. The robotic devices 680and 682 then use the determination of whether the imaged user matches alegitimate user of the property or an intruder to control furthertracking operation.

For example, based on a determination that the imaged user is anintruder, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may continue tracking theintruder and ensure that images sufficient to identify the intruder havebeen captured. In this example, the robotic devices 680 and 682 mayattempt to capture biometric data from the intruder, such as voiceprintdata, fingerprint data, and/or biological samples with DNA of theintruder. In addition, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may take actionto thwart the purpose of the intruder. For example, the robotic devices680 and 682 may fly in random patterns around the intruder, may playloud sounds near the intruder, may shine lights near the intruder, mayoutput identifying information collected about the intruder (e.g., male,around six feet tall and one hundred eighty pounds), may enable acentral station operator or first responder to talk to the intruderthrough a two-way voice communication session established through themonitoring system control unit 610 and the robotic device, and may takeother actions directed to disrupting the intruder.

Alternatively, based on a determination that the imaged user is alegitimate user, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may discontinuetracking the legitimate user and scan for intruders. The robotic devices680 and 682 also may report the location of the legitimate user. Therobotic devices 680 and 682 further may continue tracking the legitimateuser and attempt to provide assistance to the user. For instance, if thealarm is a fire alarm event, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may staynear the legitimate user, continuously or periodically update thelocation of the legitimate user to assist another user or firstresponder in helping the legitimate user, provide audible reminders ofwhat types of actions should be taken in a fire, enable a centralstation operator or first responder to talk to the legitimate userthrough a two-way voice communication session established through themonitoring system control unit 610 and the robotic device, and may takeother actions directed to assisting the legitimate user.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may be assigned todifferent areas of the property where the robotic devices 680 and 682can move in an unobstructed manner. In these examples, the roboticdevices 680 and 682 may be assigned to different levels in a property(e.g., an upstairs robotic device and a downstairs robotic device) andeven different rooms or sections that are potentially blocked by doors.The monitoring system control unit 610 coordinate tracking movementbased on the assigned areas. For instance, the monitoring system controlunit 610 determines areas in a property where an event has been detected(e.g., where motion is sensed, where a door or window is opened, etc.)and only controls the robotic devices assigned to the determined areasto operate. In this regard, the monitoring system control unit 610 mayuse location of users determined using sensors to control operation ofthe robotic devices 680 and 682.

In addition, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may be assigned as interiorand exterior devices. The interior devices may navigate throughout aninterior of the property. The exterior devices may navigate about anexterior periphery of the property. The exterior devices may be weatherconditioned to remain outdoors (e.g., in an outdoor enclosure) at alltimes such that the exterior devices can explore an exterior of theproperty at any suitable time. In addition, the exterior devices mayremain inside the property and the monitoring system control unit 610may open a door to enable an exterior robotic device to leave and returnto the property. For instance, an exterior device may have a base orreference location in a garage of the property and the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610 may automatically open a garage door to allow theexterior device to leave the garage and explore the exterior of theproperty.

In some implementations, the monitoring system control unit 610 maymonitor operational status of the robotic devices 680 and 682 andcoordinate further operation based on the operational status. In theseimplementations, the monitoring system control unit 610 may detect thata particular robotic device is no longer operational and control one ormore other robotic devices to perform operations originally assigned tothe non-operational robotic device. In addition, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610 may determine that the non-operational robotic devicewas navigating close to an intruder and received an impact based onaccelerometer data prior to becoming non-operational. In this case, themonitoring system control unit 610 may infer that the robotic device wassmashed by the intruder and control other robotic devices based on theinference. For instance, after inferring a smash event, the monitoringsystem control unit 610 may control operation of other robotic devicesto maintain distance from the intruder by only flying high overhead.

In some implementations, the monitoring system control unit 610 maydetermine battery power available for each of the robotic devices 680and 682 and coordinate operation of the robotic devices 680 and 682based on available battery power. In these implementations, the roboticdevices 680 and 682 may report battery power remaining to the monitoringsystem control unit 610 and the monitoring system control unit 610 maydetermine a subset of the robotic devices 680 and 682 to deploy based onthe battery power information. For instance, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610 may select to initially deploy the robotic device withthe most available battery power to allow the other robotic devices tocharge while the selected device assists with monitoring. Once thebattery power for the selected device falls below a threshold, themonitoring system control unit 610 may return the selected device to acharging station and select the robotic device with the presentlyhighest available battery power to resume the monitoring options beingperformed. The monitoring system control unit 610 may cycle through allof the robotic devices 680 and 682 in an intelligent manner that bestleverages the battery power available. If the battery power of a devicebecomes too low to effectively operate as a navigating device, themonitoring system control unit 610 may control the robotic device toremain stationary and act as a stationary camera or other sensor tostill assist with monitoring, although the added benefit of navigationno longer exists.

In addition to battery, the monitoring system control unit 610 mayselect the robotic device to deploy and what action to take based on thesensor that triggered the event, a time of day, and a state of thesystem. For instance, if the monitoring system control unit 610 detectsan unusual motion sensor event, the monitoring system control unit 610may select the nearest robotic device to navigate to an area of theproperty where motion was detected and investigate. Alternatively, ifthe monitoring system control unit 610 detects a critical alarm event(e.g., a security breach of a system armed stay, a fire alarm, a carbonmonoxide alarm, etc.), the monitoring system control unit 610 may deployall robotic devices 680 and 682 at any time of the day. If themonitoring system control unit 610 detects an intrusion breach, themonitoring system control unit 610 may assign some devices to “attack”the intruder by disrupting the purpose of the intruder and collectingidentifying information for the intruder and assign some devices tosearch for other users in the property. The selected devices and actionstaken may vary based on sensor data, time of day, and the state of themonitoring system.

In some implementations, the system 600 allows central stationoperators, first responders, and/or users of the property to interactwith and control the robotic devices 680 and 682. In theseimplementations, a central station operator, first responder, or user ofthe property may provide input to control the robotic devices 680 and682 in a manner that best assists with monitoring and investigation ofdetected events. For instance, the central station operator, firstresponder, or user of the property may remotely control navigation ofthe robotic devices 680 and 682. The central station operator, firstresponder, or user of the property also may provide general commandsrelated to actions the robotic devices 680 and 682 are designed to take.In response to these general commands, the robotic devices 680 and 682may automatically perform the desired actions, such as following aninstruction to explore the property or following an instruction tonavigate to an upstairs bedroom.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may periodicallyperform test sequences to ensure the robotic devices 680 and 682 willoperate correctly if needed. In these examples, the robotic devices 680and 682 may periodically navigate predefined navigation patterns used toinvestigate the property and/or may navigate around the property in ascanning sequence. The robotic devices 680 and 682 may determine whetherthe test sequences perform correctly or whether an error occurs thatprevents full investigation of the property. To the extent an erroroccurs, the robotic devices 680 and 682 report the error and enable auser of the property or a technician to correct the error prior to atime when the robotic devices 680 and 682 would be needed for safetymonitoring.

The monitoring system control unit 610 also may arrange the testsequences to occur during periods of time that are convenient for usersof the property. For example, the monitoring system control unit 610 mayassess sensor data at the property and determine a time period in whichthe property is unoccupied and unlikely to be occupied until the testsequences complete. In this example, the monitoring system control unit610 waits until the preferred time period to initiate test sequences forone or more of the robotic devices 680 and 682.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may be used to providea critical alert to a user in the property or attempt to wake a sleepingperson as appropriate. In these examples, none of the users may beresponding to a critical alert and, in response, the monitoring systemcontrol unit 610 may control the robotic devices 680 and 682 to searchfor a person in the property and provide the critical alert very closeto an identified person in a manner that is highly likely to gain theperson's attention to the critical alert. In the event that the personappears to be sleeping in the property, the robotic devices 680 and 682may attempt to wake the person by providing loud input very near theperson and/or by making contact with the person. In this regard, therobotic devices 680 and 682 may be useful in waking a sleeping personwhen a fire or carbon monoxide alarm has been detected and the personneeds to leave the property. The robotic devices 680 and 682 also maydetermine when a person is nonresponsive (e.g., unconscious) and may beneed of immediate assistance. Also, the robotic devices 680 and 682 mayserve as an alarm clock for critical meetings based on a person havingtrouble waking up using traditional alarm clocks.

In some implementations, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may operate asmobile sensors that move throughout the property. In theseimplementations, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may have temperaturesensors that can be used as inputs to a thermostat at the property. Inthis regard, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may navigate throughout theproperty and take temperature measurements at various locations in theproperty. With the temperatures at various locations, the system 600 mayidentify hot and/or cold spots in the property and adjust thermostatoperation accordingly. For instance, the robotic devices 680 and 682 maybe deployed to take temperature measurements in areas of the propertywhere people are located and the thermostat may be adjusted to improvethe temperature in the location where people are actually located in theproperty.

In some examples, the robotic devices 680 and 682 may have humidity andair flow sensors in addition to temperature sensors. In these examples,the robotic devices 680 and 682 may periodically navigate throughout theproperty and take temperature, humidity, and air flow measurements atvarious locations throughout the property. The system 600 may use thetemperature, humidity, and air flow measurements to detect inefficientareas of the property. The inefficiencies may be used to detect areaswhere insulation in the property in deficient (e.g., new siding,windows, and/or doors may be useful in certain areas) and/or where leaksexist in the property. The property efficiency information may beprovided to a user of the property to enable the user to improveefficiency in the property.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:identifying, by a monitoring system that is configured to monitor aproperty, one or more sensors that are within a proximity of a dronethat is detected to be navigating within the property; determining, bythe monitoring system, a first signature of the drone; identifying, bythe monitoring system, a second signature of an authorized droneassociated with the property; comparing, by the monitoring system, thefirst signature and the second signature; and determining whether todisable the one or more sensors based on comparing the first signatureand the second signature.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein: the methodfurther comprises determining that the first signature matches thesecond signature based on comparing the first signature and the secondsignature; and determining whether to disable the one or more sensorscomprises determining to disable the one or more sensors based ondetermining that the first signature matches the second signature. 3.The method of claim 2, wherein: determining to disable the one or moresensors comprises disabling, by the monitoring system, the one or moresensors for a specified time period; and the method further comprisesre-enabling, by the monitoring system, the one or more sensors after thespecified time period.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein: the methodfurther comprises determining that the first signature matches thesecond signature based on comparing the first signature and the secondsignature; and determining whether to disable the one or more sensorscomprises determining to keep the one or more sensors enabled based ondetermining that the first signature does not match the secondsignature.
 5. The method of claim 4, further comprising: determiningthat the drone that is detected to be navigating with the property is anunauthorized drone; and triggering an alarm event within the propertybased on determining that the drone that is detected to be navigatingwith the property is an unauthorized drone.
 6. The method of claim 1,further comprising: obtaining, by the monitoring system, sensor datacollected by a set of sensors located in the property, wherein the setof sensors includes the one or more sensors; detecting, by themonitoring system, the drone that is navigating within the propertybased on the sensor data.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein identifyingthe one or more sensors comprises: determining, by the monitoringsystem, that the drone is navigating along a path within the property;and determining that the one or more sensors are located along the path.8. A system comprising: one or more computing devices; and one or morenon-transitory computer-readable storage devices storing instructionsthat, when executed by the one or more computing devices, causes the oneor more computing devices to perform operations comprising: identifying,by a monitoring system that is configured to monitor a property, one ormore sensors that are within a proximity of a drone that is detected tobe navigating within the property; determining, by the monitoringsystem, a first signature of the drone; identifying, by the monitoringsystem, a second signature of an authorized drone associated with theproperty; comparing, by the monitoring system, the first signature andthe second signature; and determining whether to disable the one or moresensors based on comparing the first signature and the second signature.9. The system of claim 8, wherein: the operations further comprisedetermining that the first signature matches the second signature basedon comparing the first signature and the second signature; anddetermining whether to disable the one or more sensors comprisesdetermining to disable the one or more sensors based on determining thatthe first signature matches the second signature.
 10. The system ofclaim 9, wherein: determining to disable the one or more sensorscomprises disabling, by the monitoring system, the one or more sensorsfor a specified time period; and the operations further comprisere-enabling, by the monitoring system, the one or more sensors after thespecified time period.
 11. The system of claim 8, wherein: theoperations further comprise determining that the first signature matchesthe second signature based on comparing the first signature and thesecond signature; and determining whether to disable the one or moresensors comprises determining to keep the one or more sensors enabledbased on determining that the first signature does not match the secondsignature.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the operations furthercomprise: determining that the drone that is detected to be navigatingwith the property is an unauthorized drone; and triggering an alarmevent within the property based on determining that the drone that isdetected to be navigating with the property is an unauthorized drone.13. The system of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:obtaining, by the monitoring system, sensor data collected by a set ofsensors located in the property, wherein the set of sensors includes theone or more sensors; and detecting, by the monitoring system, the dronethat is navigating within the property based on the sensor data.
 14. Thesystem of claim 8, wherein identifying the one or more sensorscomprises: determining, by the monitoring system, that the drone isnavigating along a path within the property; and determining that theone or more sensors are located along the path.
 15. At least onenon-transitory computer-readable storage device storing instructionsthat, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or moreprocessors to perform operations comprising: identifying, by amonitoring system that is configured to monitor a property, one or moresensors that are within a proximity of a drone that is detected to benavigating within the property; determining, by the monitoring system, afirst signature of the drone; identifying, by the monitoring system, asecond signature of an authorized drone associated with the property;comparing, by the monitoring system, the first signature and the secondsignature; and determining whether to disable the one or more sensorsbased on comparing the first signature and the second signature.
 16. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein:the operations further comprise determining that the first signaturematches the second signature based on comparing the first signature andthe second signature; and determining whether to disable the one or moresensors comprises determining to disable the one or more sensors basedon determining that the first signature matches the second signature.17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage device of claim 16,wherein: determining to disable the one or more sensors comprisesdisabling, by the monitoring system, the one or more sensors for aspecified time period; and the operations further comprise re-enabling,by the monitoring system, the one or more sensors after the specifiedtime period.
 18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage device ofclaim 15, wherein: the operations further comprise determining that thefirst signature matches the second signature based on comparing thefirst signature and the second signature; and determining whether todisable the one or more sensors comprises determining to keep the one ormore sensors enabled based on determining that the first signature doesnot match the second signature.
 19. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage device of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:determining that the drone that is detected to be navigating with theproperty is an unauthorized drone; and triggering an alarm event withinthe property based on determining that the drone that is detected to benavigating with the property is an unauthorized drone.
 20. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein theoperations further comprise: obtaining, by the monitoring system, sensordata collected by a set of sensors located in the property, wherein theset of sensors includes the one or more sensors; and detecting, by themonitoring system, the drone that is navigating within the propertybased on the sensor data.